Coalition of the Willing?

The Jewlarious guide to the 2013 Israeli election and Benjamin Netanyahu’s coalition options.

JEWLARIOUS SATIRE: November 6, 2012 was Election Day in the United States. By approximately 11 p.m. that same evening ,balloons and confetti were falling at Obama headquarters as the American people knew who their President would be.

The Israeli election was January 22, and we still don’t know the makeup of the Knesset.

By contrast the Israeli election was held on January 22, 2013 and we still don’t know the exact makeup of the next Israeli Knesset. While Benjamin Netanyahu is the presumptive Prime Minister, there have been no balloons and confetti at his campaign headquarters. Maybe some falafel and humus. Maybe.

Are you one of the many who find the Israeli electoral system confusion? Wondering what is taking so long? Well never fear, Jewlarious is here with an explanation of the electoral system, the winners and losers, and what Netanyahu’s coalition options are.

Israeli Electoral System

The Israeli parliament or Knesset has 120 seats, modeled after the 120-member Jewish court called the Anshei Knesset Hagedolah (Men of the Great Assembly) which existed in biblical times. The presumptive Prime Minister comes from the party that wins the most seats. If his party wins more than 60 seats, then game over – break open the humus. But this never happens, so the presumptive Prime Minister has to form a coalition with some of the other parties to get him over the 60-seat threshold. Sorry Bibi, put the humus back in the fridge.

2013 Knesset Parties

Results of the 2013 Israeli election breaks down as follows:

Party

Seats

Likud-Beitenu

31

Yesh Atid

19

Labor

15

Habayit Hayehudi

12

Shas

11

UTJ

7

Hatnua

6

Meretz

6

Hadash

4

United Arab List (Ta'al)

4

Balad

3

Kadima

2

Total

120

Likud – led by Benjamin Netanyahu is considered right of centre – although it would be considered left to any party to the right of it. Stay with me here. Likud merged in this election with…

Yisrael Beitenu – or “Israel is our Home,” traditionally a Russian immigrant party which is also right-of-center. It is led by Avigdor Lieberman who has had some legal troubles, but come on – which politician hasn’t. Lieberman also has a beard. It’s hard to trust a politician with a beard like that.

Yesh Atid (“There is a Future”) – a new centrist party led by popular former television host Yair Lapid. It’s not entirely clear what the Yesh Atid platform is thus far, as most of the party are first time politicians. But what is clear is that Yair Lapid is very good looking. Seriously, even his eyebrows are good looking.

Labor – considered left-of-center, the influence of this once-dominant party in Israeli politics has waned over the last 30 years. The party of David Ben Gurion is now run by Shelly Yachimovich who is also a former television host. What is it with Israelis and their television hosts? Katie Couric, you could be the next Prime Minister of Israel!

Katie Couric, you could be the next Prime Minister of Israel!

Habayit Hayehudi (“The Jewish Home”) – right-of-center and sometimes called a “nationalist” party (why is that a bad thing?). It is a religious Zionist party led by former army commando turned dot-com millionaire Naftali Bennett. Bennett is considered controversial by some due to his statements that the Palestinians do not really want peace with the State of Israel. Not sure why that is controversial.

Shas – the ultra-Orthodox Sephardic party headed by spiritual leader Rabbi Ovadiah Yosef. Shas’s motto is “return the crown to the former glory.” More Israelis should be wearing crowns – that’s understandable.

United Torah Judaism – the Ashkenazi ultra-Orthodox party. Its politicians have beards, but these are religious beards so do not arouse suspicion like Avigdor Lieberman’s beard.

Hatnuah – a left-of-center party headed by former foreign minister Tzipi Livni. “Hatnuah” means “The Movement,” but seeing as though Livni’s party only obtained six seats it didn’t really move much. Oh – snap!

Meretz – the extreme left-wing party headed by Zehava Gal-On. In a recent interview Gal-On commented, “When I look at Israeli society I get depressed, because most of the people here are right wing or close to the right wing.” To those on the left of Gal-On, they think the same thing of her.

Hadash – an Arab party – yes, you read that correctly. Arab Israelis vote freely in Israeli elections unlike their brethren in the majority of Arab countries. Hadash’s political outlook is Communist. Apparently they didn’t get the memo from the Kremlin that Communism is over.

United Arab List (Ta'al) – another Arab party – yes, you read correctly. Arab Israelis vote freely in Israeli elections unlike their brethren in the majority of Arab countries. Ta’al did get the Kremlin memo – they are not Communists.

Balad – another Arab party – yes, you read correctly. Arab Israelis vote freely in Israeli elections unlike their brethren in the majority of Arab countries. Balad opposes the idea of Israel as a Jewish state, preferring a bi-national state. In addition, one of its members, Haneen Zoabi, is apparently a big fan of Iran obtaining nuclear weapons. What a patriot.

Kadima – once the party of Ariel Sharon which obtained 29 seats in the 2006 Knesset, this time around they squeaked out only 2 seats. At one point it was kind of a centrist party, but now with only two members they’re probably going to hang out in the Knesset cafeteria playing video games.

Coalition Options

The way we see it Netanyahu has five coalition options.

Broad Coalition Option – Netanyahu has said publicly that he wants to form the broadest coalition possible, to confront the numerous challenges that Israel is facing on the horizon. Labor, Meretz, Hatnuah and the Arab parties have all said that they would not join a Netanyahu government. So that leaves:

The problem with this option is that Labor and Hatnuah have both said they would not sit in a Netanyahu government. That’s what they say, anyway. Also, in this option there is definitely no cholent Fridays.

Broad Coalition without Habayit Hayehudi – this is the same as the Broad Coalition Option except without Habayit Hayehudi (= 70). Naftali Bennett used to be Netanyahu’s Chief of Staff, but the two had some sort of falling out, so Netanyahu may pursue this option to spite Bennett. This is the political equivalent to giving your fellow classmate a wedgie.

Hell Freezes Over Coalition – Just for the sake of exploring all our options, Netanyahu could conceivably do this:

About the Author

The opinions expressed in the comment section are the personal views of the commenters. Comments are moderated, so please keep it civil.

Visitor Comments: 6

(6)
Anonymous,
January 30, 2013 9:06 PM

I'm with Nechama & Chaiah (especially if one or the other is single)

I've been here over THIRTY years!, and this is probably the best summation I've EVER seen.
/Kol HaKavod/

(5)
Chaiah Schwab,
January 30, 2013 5:20 AM

I agree with Nechama (#2). Whadda you mean with that "disclaimer: This was just a fun article ..." ?? This is the best explanation of Israeli politics I have seen, and I read the weekly 150 page "Yated Neeman"! (Plus, I lived in Israel for 20 years.) You hit the political nail on the political head!

(4)
Steve,
January 30, 2013 1:50 AM

Handsome Eye Brows

This is funny stuff -- and informative to boot.
BTW, Yair Lapid's eye brows are handsome! Good call!

(3)
Max Power,
January 29, 2013 8:37 PM

most likely coalition

You missed the most obvious partnership, Likud 31 -Yesh Atid 19 - Bayit Yehudi 12 - Kadima 2 = 64 Right of center coalition, similar financial platforms, and all agree on some form of service for all.

(2)
Nechama,
January 29, 2013 4:25 PM

Informative

LOL!!
No need for a disclaimer. This article explained more than many more serious ones.
Thank you!

I was born with a neuromuscular disease known as Spinal Muscular Atrophy and have been confined to a wheelchair my entire life. Unfortunately my sister and I were raised without any religious instruction or guidance. My father wasn't Jewish and although my mother is, she openly claims to be an atheist. The "good news" is that both my sister and myself - independent of each other and at different times in our lives - realized that we are Jewish and chose to live a Jewish life.

Because of my disability, I'm not always able to attend services on Shabbat, but I always light candles, pray from a Siddur and read the weekly Torah portion. I would like to know whether, considering my situation, if using a computer is allowed during the Sabbath? I found the complete Bible online and since my computer is voice-activated I don't have to struggle to turn pages or continuously ask for assistance.

Thank you to everyone at Aish.com for making it possible for myself and so many others to learn about being Jewish and grow in the most important part of our lives.

The Aish Rabbi Replies:

Thank you so much for your encouraging words and for sharing your inspiring story.

God gives each of us a set of challenges. To those more capable of conquering difficulties, He gave bigger challenges. A challenge from God is a sign that He cares about us and has confidence in our ability to become great.

It sounds like you're doing great!

As for using the computer on Shabbat, that is prohibited. A foundation of Judaism is that we need to respect God's wishes, even if we think that doing otherwise is "for a good reason." Consider this story:

A king calls in his trusted minister and says: "I have an important mission for you to perform. Go to the neighboring kingdom and meet in the palace with their leaders. But remember one thing - under no circumstances must you remove your shirt during this meeting. Now go and do as I say."

The minister sets off on his merry way and soon arrives at the neighboring kingdom. There he heads straight for the palace where he meets with the King. In the midst of their discussion, he sees some of the king's officers pointing and laughing at him.

"Why are you laughing?" asks the visiting minister.

"Because we've never seen someone with such a pronounced hunchback as yourself," they say.

"What are you talking about? I'm not a hunchback!"

"Of course you are!"

"No I'm not!"

"We'll bet you one million dollars that you are!"

"Fine - I'll gladly take your bet."

"Okay, so take off your shirt and prove it."

At which point the minister remembers the parting words of the king... "under no circumstances must you remove your shirt during the meeting." Yet, the minister reasons, a million dollars would certainly bring added wealth to the king's coffers. I know I'm not a hunchback, so I'll surely win the bet. Of course, under these circumstances the king would approve...

The minister removes his shirt and proudly displays his perfect posture. With pride in his achievement, he holds out his hand, into which is placed a check for one million dollars.

The minister can barely contain his excitement. He quickly ends the meeting and runs back to give the wonderful news to his king. "I earned you a million dollars!" exclaims the minister. "It was easy. I only had to remove my shirt to prove that I wasn't a hunchback."

"You did what?!" shouts the king. "But I told you specifically not to remove your shirt. I trusted that you'd follow instructions, and so I bet the other king $10 million dollars that he couldn't get you to remove your shirt!"

The Torah tells us "Do not add or subtract from the mitzvahs." (Deut. 4:2) Jewish law is a precise metaphysical science. Consider a great work of art. Would you consider adding a few notes to a Bach fugue, or some brushstrokes to a Rembrandt portrait?!

Perfection, by definition, cannot be improved upon. Altering Torah law is an unacceptable implication that God is lacking.

The verse in Psalms 19:8 declares: "Torat Hashem Temimah" - the Torah of God is complete. For just as adding one wire to a transistor radio means it no longer can pick up reception, so too we mustn't tinker with Jewish law. The mitzvahs of God are perfect.

May the Almighty give you strength to continue your growth in Judaism.

In 1315, King Louis X of France called back the Jews who had been expelled a few decades earlier by King Louis IX. This marked a theme in Jewish-French life: expulsions and subsequent invitations to return. The French monarchy was trying to establish their land as the "new Jerusalem," and to fulfill this mission attempted several crusades to Israel. In 1615, King Louis XIII ordered that Christians were forbidden to speak with Jews, upon penalty of death. Eventually, in 1683, King Louis XIV expelled the Jews from the colony of Martinique.

Focus on what you do want. Make your goal explicit. “My goal is to increase my moments of joy.” This way, every single moment of joy is a successful moment.

Celebrate each moment of joy. Be grateful every time you experience joy.

Having this goal will place your attention on joy. Instead of feeling bad when you are not joyful, you will experience positive feelings about experiencing more joy.

Each moment of joy in your entire life is experienced one moment at a time. You can’t have more than one moment of joy in any given moment, but you can increase the number of joyful moments. How? By focusing on it.

There is no person on earth so righteous, who does only good and does not sin (Ecclesiastes 7:20).

Reading the suggestions for ridding oneself of character defects, someone might say, "These are all very helpful for someone who has character defects, but I do not see anything about myself that is defective."

In the above-cited verse, Solomon states what we should all know: no one is perfect. People who cannot easily find imperfections within themselves must have a perception so grossly distorted that they may not even be aware of major defects. By analogy, if a person cannot hear anything, it is not that the whole world has become absolutely silent, but that he or she has lost all sense of hearing and may thus not be able to hear even the loudest thunder.

In his monumental work, Duties of the Heart, Rabbeinu Bachaye quotes a wise man who told his disciples, "If you do not find defects within yourself, I am afraid you have the greatest defect of all: vanity." In other words, people who see everything from an "I am great/right" perspective will of course believe that they do no wrong.

When people can see no faults in themselves, it is generally because they feel so inadequate that the awareness of any personal defects would be devastating. Ironically, vanity is a defense against low self-esteem. If we accept ourselves as fallible human beings and also have a sense of self-worth, we can become even better than we are.

Today I shall...

be aware that if I do not find things within myself to correct, it may be because I am threatened by such discoveries.

With stories and insights,
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